We follow the literary universe quite keenly at the best of times, mainly because we're frustrated novelists and hope one day to bathe in the rich, creamery money of grants and prizes, but also because we like to stay cultured 'n' shit.

However, we also realise that it's about as "cool" as watching Question Time (which is pretty damn cool, if you ask us), which perhaps explains TheAge.com.au's front-page treatment of this story on the Miles Franklin Literary Award's announced nominees:

FULLY!!

Oh dear. It's almost as daggy as news.com.au's "Pose Like A Pro" effort from yesterday. Suggested topics for the Age Online monkeys to tackle in future include LOLNobelPeacePrize and FAILStateFunerals.

Yesterday we received a charming email informing us of the existence of a website which allows users to contribute to an ongoing online Mills & Boon novel.

Check it out here.

Remember when you were a kid and you used to play that 'campfire' game where you had to make up a story, line by line? One person would start, then the next would start a new sentence...and so on...and so on...

Well, we're adults now and this is a NEW, TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD. So we're taking the old campfire game and turning it digital. And what other way to do it than with the classic, literary genre of MILLS AND BOON.

Basically, the premise is this - you log into the site. You read the latest entry. Then you add your own. Finally we will have our very own masterpiece which will will send off to Avon and attempt to get published. And then we will be rich, godammit!! RICH!!!!

Sounds intriguing. There are two stories which folk can choose to participate in - 'The Siren's Seduction' which claims to be 'a saucy medical romance set amidst the harsh outback plains of the Queensland bush' (soon to be made into a movie with Baz Luhrmann?), and 'Workplace Relations' which is deliciously described as 'a sultry office romance sure to steam up computer screens and cubicles across the world'.

We hope Alan Fletcher continues with his 'workplace relations' themed career direction and stars in the made for TV version of the latter.